Police deployed at interstate border to enforce strict ban on festive bath
HARIDWAR: To enforce total prohibition of festive bath on Kartik Poornima in Haridwar on Monday, heavy deployment of police and provincial armed constabulary (PAC) has been made at the interstate border and Ganga ghats.
Every year on the occasion of Kartik Poornima, more than a million pilgrims arrive in Haridwar, particularly from Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, National Capital Region and Himachal Pradesh, to take a dip in Ganga and visit shrines in Haridwar, .
From Sunday noon itself, barricades and strict checking was enforced at Uttar Pradesh-Uttarakhand border checkposts at Mandawar, Narsain, Chidiyapur, Kali Nadi by district police.
Barricades and signage have been put up depicting cancellation of the Kartik Poornima bath urging devotees to not to arrive for a sacred dip in Haridwar owing to preventive measures due to spread of Covid-19 cases.
According to Senior Superintendent of Haridwar Police D Senthyl Aboodai Krishan, even if anyone tries to enter Ganga ghats, Har-Ki-Pauri in particular, then challan will be imposed and if needed, a case will be registered against the violators under the Epidemic Diseases
Act. The traffic diversion for vehicles to Dehradun from Uttar Pradesh side at Rampur Tiraha in Muzaffarnagar will be operational till Monday evening.
Ganga Sabha, which manages affairs of Har-K-Pauri, has urged the administration and state government to allow locals to take holy bath on Karthik Poornima, citing religious tradition.